Urethral Microbiome of Adolescent Males

描述：青春期男性前尿道的微生物群描述甚少，没有数据说明青春期“典型”尿道微生物群的范围是青春期发育的功能或各种类型的伴侣性活动的开始。这意味着目前对青少年男性尿道微生物群的了解完全依赖于来自成年人的数据，以及来自流行病学和行为解释的数据。青少年性行为的显著种族差异和性传播感染（STI）等条件的差异证明了探索男性尿道微生物群的潜在种族差异是合理的。一些针对成年男性的研究表明，男性尿道微生物群与性传播感染之间存在重要的相互作用，但这项研究尚未扩展到年轻男性。在这里，我们提出表征男性尿道微生物组纵向尿液样本收集从一个多民族的队列青少年男性。微生物菌群将被评估为青春期发育、性活动和性传播感染事件的功能。受试者为拉丁裔（N=24）、非裔美国人（N=24）和欧美裔（N=24）男性，入组时年龄在14 - 17岁；总N = 72)。参与者将从性传播感染高发地区的城市诊所招募。社会人口统计数据将在登记时收集。日常行为和症状数据将通过手机收集，这些数据也将用于队列维护和样本收集的安排。将在入组时收集尿液和36个1个月的随访样本，使用高通量16S rRNA系统发育、Q-PCR和

DESCRIPTION: The microflora of the anterior male urethra during adolescence is poorly described and no data address the range of "typical" urethral microflora during adolescence as functions of pubertal development or onset of various types of partnered sexual activity. This means that current understanding of the urethral microbiome in adolescent men rests entirely on data drawn from adults, and from epidemiologic and behavioral explanations. Marked ethnic group variation in adolescent sexual behaviors and disparity in conditions such as sexually transmitted infections (STI) justifies exploration of potential ethnic group differences in the male urethral microflora. Some research among adult males suggests important interactions between the male urethral microflora and STI, but this research has not been extended to younger men. Here we propose to characterize the male urethral microbiome in longitudinal urine samples collected from a multi-ethnic cohort of adolescent males. Microbial flora will be assessed as function of pubertal development, sexual activity, and incident STI. Subjects will be Latino (N=24), African-American (N=24), and Euro-American (N=24) males, ages 14 - 17 at enrollment; total N=72). Participants will be recruited from an urban clinic within an area of high prevalence of STI. Socio-demographic data will be collected at enrollment. Daily behavioral and symptomologic data will be collected via cell phone, which will also be used for cohort maintenance and scheduling of sample collections. Urine will be collected at enrollment and up to 36 1-month follow-up samples for characterization of microflora using high-throughput 16S rRNA phylogeny, Q-PCR and metagenomic sequencing. STI testing will be done as well to better understand interactions between the urethral microbiome and infection. Cell phones also will be used to initiate daily sample collection for 10 days following trigger events such as specific sexual acts, antibiotic use, condom failure, or genital symptoms. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The project is designed to describe the range of the normal microbiome of adolescent males, to describe the changes associated with puberty and to link the microbiome to potential health conditions such as sexually transmitted infections.